Sister Reflects on Hardship of Spending Another Holiday Season Away from Her Brother

My family and I thought we might have reason to feel especially grateful this holiday season. My brother Gerald was up for parole and we believed he’d be set free. 

Gerald was arrested at 15 after playing a small part in an armed robbery in downtown Cincinnati that ended in murder. Gerald never thought any one would die, but he was wrong and has taken responsibility for his actions.  He was not the shooter but he got nearly the same sentence, 18 years to life.

Since then, my brother has worked hard to redeem himself. Now 33, he’s earned his GED, steered clear of trouble and even become a mentor to new prisoners, teaching them how to survive the harsh world they’re entering. 

While in prison, Gerald earned his barber’s license and on his release, Gerald is planning to work as a barber. We had planned to have him live with me until he got his footing financially.

I worked with several attorneys, including CLC's Angela Chang, to put together a powerful presentation for the parole board. Our presentation included many letters of support from family and friends and a psychiatric evaluation that put Gerald at very low risk for committing future crimes. Read More

Our presentation showed that Gerald has changed a lot since that fateful day 17 years ago; he has overcome the odds of prison life and grown up to become a very different man from the 15-year-old boy that entered the prison doors.  He has somehow found peace within those walls and is now ready to come back out and start positively contributing to our community.

But all of it - the nearly two decades he’d already served, his good behavior, his plan to become a productive citizen, his family support and positive evaluation - fell on deaf ears. The board denied his parole and he won’t be eligible again until 2014.

And we don’t even know why. The parole board does not explain its decisions. It’s not accountable to the public. Its seven members are appointed by the director of the State Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections and approved by the governor.

This is a major failing of our “justice” system.  Gerald was tried once for his offense, has taken responsibility for his actions, and is now ready to come home a changed man.  Whenever he is released, my family will welcome him with open arms and support him in whatever he chooses to do.

But that may be never. Under Ohio law, he could be held for life. That would be a terrible waste of a young man who made a foolish decision at the tender age of 15 and of taxpayer dollars since it costs the state $25,000 a year to house my brother.

So this year, our thoughts will inevitably turn to 2014 - the next holiday season that Gerald could potentially spend with us.   Maybe then we can celebrate liked we hoped.